Recent Blog Posts in February 2010

Child support in Florida does not always end when you think it will.   Florida law requires that, in general, the obligation to pay child support ends when the child reaches the age of eighteen.   That is not, however, always the case.

Any expert Tampa divorce lawyer will tell you that the most notable exception to that rule applies to situations where a child is scheduled to celebrate the eighteenth birthday while still in high school.   The law gives the courts the option to extend the child support obligation to when the child graduates.   In my opinion, this part of the law is poorly written.   It allows the child support to continue until graduation only if the child is expected to graduate before the age of nineteen.  If a child turns eighteen the week before the end of her junior year and is expected to turn nineteen the week before the end of her senior year, the child support will stop at her eighteenth birthday because she has no expectation of graduating before age nineteen.   It would seem more fair to allow child support to continue to high school graduation or age nineteen whichever occurs first.

Child support will also end when a child becomes emancipated.   There are certain situations where a court will order the emancipation of a child in order to remove the child from the control of the parents before the age of eighteen if it is in the best interests of the child.

The other ways that child support will end before age eighteen is if the child marries, joins the armed services or dies.

Finally, if a child is dependent, (for example, because of mental retardation or some other debilitating condition), the court may extend the requirement to support the child indefinitely.

Bottom line:   Ask your expert Florida divorce lawyer if any of these exceptions to the rule apply in your situation.

In cases where one parent is activated to military service, and timesharing and child support are at issue, the activated parent may worry about parental rights.  What will happen to the children during my time away?  Does the activation alter my rights to my children permanently?

The Florida divorce courts will not permanently alter timesharing or child support while one parent is deplo yed on active duty in the military.  The courts are specifically not allowed to modify any issues relating to the parties' minor children, except on a temporary basis.  If the court does temporarily modify timesharing or child support, the court is obligated to reinstate the previous time sharing order when the parent returns from active duty or deployment.

The rules of Florida divorces regarding temporary changes to timesharing or child support, as stated above, do not apply to permanent change of station moves by military personnel.

Bottom line:  If you, or your ex-spouse is facing a move due to military reasons, you should contact an expert Tampa divorce attorney to discuss your issues.

It is often difficult for parents to agree on a timesharing schedule for the children in a Florida divorce.   After all, it is difficult to reach agreement on many things as you dissolve your relationship.   When you consider that nothing is more important to a parent than the welfare of the children, the pressure surrounding the negotiation process becomes even greater.

To be a parenting coordinator, a person must either be licensed as a Florida mental health professional, psychiatrist or lawyer or be certified as a family law mediator with a master’s degree in a mental health field.   Expert St. Petersburg divorce lawyers often refer clients to parent coordinators for assistance in creating a timesharing plan because of the education and experience in dealing with children that comes with these qualifications.

The parent coordinator will meet with the parents both together and individually to discuss the needs of the children.   In some cases, the parent coordinator will contact teachers or others who have information regarding the children or, in certain circumstances, speak with the children themselves.

The primary goal of the parent coordinator will be to reach an agreement between the parents on all aspects of their future timesharing arrangement.   Not only will the parents decide which days the children will spend at each home, but also agree upon rules for telephone contact, exceptions to the usual schedule, responsibility for transporting the children, systems for selection of doctors, schools, extracurricular activities and all other choices you will make as your children mature.

Parent coordinators are fairly new to the divorce process in Florida, but have proven to be quite valuable in helping to reduce the bickering and reach agreements that divorcing parents can accept.

Bottom line:   Ask your expert Florida divorce lawyer if a parent coordinator could be helpful in your situation.

As part of the petition for protection, the petitioner can request different forms of relief including the following: injunctive relief to protect the petitioner from domestic violence; temporary exclusive use and possession of the parties’ residence; temporary exclusive use and possession of personal property, such as vehicles; temporary custody of the minor children; temporary child support; and temporary alimony.   Additionally, as part of the petition for protection, the petitioner can request that the respondent attend a batterers’ intervention program.

For the court to grant a temporary injunction for protection against domestic violence based on the initial request/petition, the court must find that an immediate and present danger of domestic violence exists.   After its review of the petition, if the court finds that an immediate and present danger of domestic violence exists, it will order an ex parte temporary injunction for protection (that means it is based just on hearing one side of the argument) which shall remain effective for a fixed period up to 15 days.

It is important to note that in the event a subsequent action for dissolution of marriage, support, or custody is filed, orders entered in the dissolution of marriage case on issues governed by Florida Statute Chapter 61 (e.g. child support, temporary support, parental responsibility) can take precedence over provisions in an injunction for protection against domestic violence.   Due to the seriousness of a domestic violence injunction, the severe effects it can have on a dissolution of marriage and the criminal liability a party may face, it is highly recommended that a party speak with and retain an expert Tampa domestic violence attorney before filing a petition for protection.

If you contact the best divorce lawyer in Tampa, you will learn that there is a very effective way of guaranteeing that you receive the alimony and child support on a timely basis.  In Florida, the courts are allowed to order that the money be taken out of the paycheck of the person ordered to pay.

The judge simply enters an Income Deduction Order.  This order requires the employer of the person owing the alimony or child support to deduct enough money out of each paycheck to cover the amounts owed.  The employer is then required to pay the money to the court through the Support Department.  The Support Department then sends the money on to the person who is supposed to receive the alimony or child support.  The employer has no choice.  The court can hold that business or that person in contempt of court and assess a fine or jail time if the order is ignored and the money is not deducted and sent in.

In fairness to the employee, the law allows that the employer would also be in contempt of court if the employer takes any disciplinary action against the employee just because the employer has to bother with the administrative hassle of deducting the funds and sending them in.

Unless there is some strong reason to do otherwise, these Income Deduction Orders are being entered in every case involving Florida alimony or child support payments.

Bottom line:  If a court orders someone to pay you alimony or child support, make sure that your expert St. Petersburg divorce lawyer provides the court an Income Deduction Order to sign that would require the money to be taken out of every paycheck.

Sometimes in a Florida divorce, one of the spouses may take off out of state with property of the marriage or may transfer ownership of marital property to someone else.  If you suspect that this is about to happen, you should contact an expert Tampa family law attorney to ask what steps can be taken to keep this from happening.

The Florida Dissolution of Marriage law provides that a judge can enter an order to protect you.  If you can show that your spouse is about to leave the state, take property out of the state or fraudulently transfer or conceal property, the judge can enter a court order called an injunction that requires your spouse to refrain from transferring or concealing the property.  In addition, the judge can enter a court order called a writ of ne exeat which prohibits your spouse from leaving the state.  In severe cases, the judge can enter a writ of bodily attachment which requires your spouse to be picked up by a law enforcement agency and held in jail.

When these are entered, the court will require you to post a bond to ensure that your allegations are accurate.  Upon having a hearing with both sides present, the judge may enter an order requiring your spouse to post a bond to pay for any anticipated losses should your spouse violate the order.

The law even provides for detailed identification information to be provided to the Florida Crime Information Center so that all law enforcement agencies in the state will have your spouse on their radar screens.

Bottom line:  If you suspect that your spouse is about to hide out of state or conceal marital property, contact an expert Tampa divorce attorney to find out how it can be stopped.

If you consulted an expert Tampa divorce attorney, you would find out that, even though you are not going to ask a court to give you a Florida divorce, you can still get support for yourself and your children.  Back in the 1950s, the state of Florida decided that support for spouses and for children was so important that there should not be a restriction requiring you to file for divorce in order to receive support.  There is not even a requirement that you be separated.

All the rules are the same as if you are asking for a divorce.  You must show the court the incomes of the two spouses and your need for support in order to get alimony.  You must also show the amount of child support required under the Florida child support guidelines.  The only difference is that you don’t have to show or even say that the marriage is irretrievably broken.

The court will follow the same rules and procedures as if you are doing this as part of the divorce process.  Once awarded, the court will enforce the award with possible contempt of court for non-payment and with garnishment of funds as if it were done as part of a Florida dissolution of marriage.

Bottom line:  If you don’t want to get a divorce, but you need support for yourself or your child, contact an expert Florida divorce lawyer and you will learn that there is a solution to your problem.

Coming to an agreement with your spouse on a child custody or timesharing plan is often times one of the most challenging aspects of a Florida divorce.  Both parties in a divorce case almost always have their children's best interests in mind.  However, problems arise when the parents cannot agree on what timesharing would be best for their children.  When this happens, a parent can ask the court to appoint a timesharing evaluator.

Timesharing evaluators are psychologists with extensive experience dealing with families going through stressful situations.  The timesharing evaluator will meet with each parent alone before meeting the children.  Family law judges value timesharing evaluations greatly.  Your judge does not have enough time to conduct as thorough an evaluation as the timesharing evaluator.  The timesharing evaluator will be able to spend the amount of time required to prepare a detailed report to present to the judge.  This report, or timesharing evaluation, will take the facts of your case and apply them to the timesharing statute.  The judge will use the evaluation to help make a decision about your timesharing schedule.

In fact, timesharing evaluators are valued so highly in Florida divorce cases that they are afforded a high level of protection from lawsuits.  Florida law states that if a lawsuit against a timesharing evaluator is not successful, the complaining parent is responsible for all reasonable costs and attorney's fees.

If you cannot come to an agreement on a timesharing plan, ask your expert Tampa divorce attorney about retaining a timesharing evaluator.

A domestic violence hearing, like any other court proceeding, can be a stressful event.   The procedures however, are not too different than other court proceedings and have many of the same procedures.    Getting an understanding of how the process of the hearing works can help alleviate some of the fears and stress that contested litigation commonly creates.

Under Florida law, the respondent to a Petition for Protection Against Domestic Violence, (often referred to as a "restraining order") is entitled to have the case heard at a return hearing.   This return hearing is held before a judge at a bench trial and without a jury.   In most jurisdictions, the judge is assigned to the domestic violence division and specifically presides over these types of hearings on a daily basis.   Like other forms of bench trials, the Florida Rules of Civil Procedure dictate the procedures of the hearing and the admissibility of evidence.

The presiding judge hears the testimony and reviews the evidence presented by the petitioner and the respondent.   It is the judge’s role to weigh the facts and evidence in order to make a determination of whether a permanent injunction should be granted.   The judge will rely on the evidence each party presents which may include; their own testimony, witness testimony, photographic and documentary evidence, and any other evidence the court deems admissible and relevant.

Because the presiding judge has had an opportunity to review the allegations in the Temporary Injunction for Protection Against Domestic Violence, the judge has a familiarity of what the petitioner is relying on as a basis for the request for a permanent injunction. Unlike other bench trials, an opening statement of the case issues by the parties is not usually given.   It is the petitioner’s burden to establish that he or she is either a victim of domestic violence or that there is reasonable cause to believe there is imminent danger of the petitioner becoming a victim of domestic violence.   In order to attempt to meet that burden, the petitioner presents the case first and should be prepared to introduce all evidence to the court upon which the petition is based.

The respondent will be given an opportunity to cross-examine each of the petitioner’s witnesses and challenge all evidence presented.   Additionally, at the conclusion of the petitioner’s case, the respondent will be given an opportunity to present their side of the case and present evidence on what the respondent believes is an accurate representation of the events in question.  

At the conclusion of the hearing, the judge may allow each party to present a closing argument.   This closing argument provides the parties one last opportunity to make a persuasive argument as to why a permanent injunction should be granted or why the temporary injunction should be dismissed.   In most cases, if the judge finds there is sufficient evidence to make the injunction permanent, the judge will immediately issue his ruling and impose the terms and conditions of a permanent injunction.

The terms and conditions of a permanent injunction can have a serious impact on the daily life of both the petitioner and respondent.   The impact can include limitations on contact with their minor children, contact with their spouses, conditions regarding support obligations, conditions regarding court ordered counseling, and other serious sanctions.   Because the outcome of a domestic violence hearing can have such an impact on an individual’s life, it is recommended that each party seeks an experienced Florida domestic violence lawyer to represent their best interests before the court.